ALCHEMY

Hi, guys! Please stay tuned to discover about alchemy. Yes, I have planned to write on alchemy, one of the intresting topics. You can check about alchemy in few days where you can see it in a new compartment, 'research'. Please do send your questions and studies on alchemy to my email. Thank you guys. Have a nice day. 

'Send Your Article on Shakespeare' CONTEST

'Send Your Article on Shakespeare' CONTEST

Hi guys! I am happy to announce all of you regarding a contest on writting article regarding William Shakespeare. Please email me your article to cheffcooking@gmail.com. I will choose and depict the best 5 articles among the rest and will be posting here with your particulars(to light and spread your talent to the world). Apart from that, the first winner will be getting a special prize from me(most probably a book). This contest is open to all regardless of country.

I would like to stress that this blog has audience from various countries. So it is a best chance to occasion your talent.

Please kindly submit your article by 31st of December this year. Subsequently, the results will be out on 5.1.2016 as the experts need some time to judge all the articles.  No plagiarism! I would like to make it as a flexible contest, thus, you may choose a specific area regarding William Shakespeare.

I would like to stress that please be comfortable with currency of knowledge that you possess on Shakespeare and the grammar errors. As we are human beings doing mistakes are the part and parcel of life. Thus, lacking in knowledge currency is not a can of worms or a hurdle for you to participate in this contest.  As it is a flexible contest, currency of knowledge is trivial, as my purpose is to encourage to improve writting skills and to gain knowledge about Shakespeare.

Hope you guys do enjoy this contest. See you in my next post. TQ.

Motto : Come we learn together despite the errors. 

HISTORY of FOODS

HISTORY on FOODS

Have you ever been ponder on the origin history about the vegetables, foods, nuts and others that you are consuming everyday?

Well, I have been pondered on that. My search on that has been apprehended my interest to the extent I found an article on this particular matter in National Geographic magazine (August 2015). 

Let me pinpoint certain foods and origin place of them as highlighted in the magazine.

1. Avocado - Mexico and Central America

2. Grape - South Caucasus

3. Apple - Central Asia

4. Banana - New Guinea

5. Coffee - Ethiopia

Next, the author of the article, Daniel Stone has evidenced that sleuthing scientists are the scientists whom will research and find the origin of the foods. Moreover, Daniel has explained that today's fruits and vegetables are the result of 'millenia of trial and error' in cultivation and selection.

New page on William Shakespeare

Hi, my dear friends! How all of you are doing there? I would like to inform a good news where I have added a new page on this blog. A page that specially dedicated to our William Shakespeare. Stay tuned and be with me to get to know more about him and his works. Tq.

Shakespeare is well-known for his comedies, descriptions on Athens, mythic androgyny, Forest of Arden, love potion and many more. If you are the beginner in Shakespeare, you might wonder that what is a love potion. To get understand on that you should read 'A Midsummer night's dream' one of the Shakespearean comedies. Well, hereby I would like attach his biodata and title of his works from comedy to sonnets.

Before starting on everything, I would like to suggest and introduce all of you on a book which compiles most of the Shakespeare's works. This book contains of both the original text and the modern text, which can epitomise the meaning in an easier way. Because, it is not easy as abc to understand Shakespeare's language. Apparently, he is famous for his language.

Indian Spicy Yogurt Drink

Indian Spicy Yogurt Drink

Hi, friends! What would you feel in summer when the sun is
 scorching? Hmm...probably you would run for a cold drink. But, what would the Indians do? They will make use of the fresh curd to make a yogurt drink (moru), a spicy yogurt drink. As we all know, chillies and spices are the best friends of the Indian foods and drinks.

Steps :
1. Fry cardamom, herbs, onions, chillies, red chillies, any other type of chillies you prefer and curry leaves. (Quantity of these items are depends on you preferences)

2. Once fried, mix it with 300ml of curd and 100ml of water in a jug. Do not boil or heat the curd.

3. Add half tablespoon of salt. (You can add more if you want it to be more salty. Indians prefer to add few pinch of salt)

4. Now, you can keep it in fridge.

5. Drink it when it is cold enough.

IDLI - South Indian Special

IDLI  CORNER

This is the Idli Maker. Some people will use pots to make idli. But, Chef Div reminding to use idli maker. Idli makers from India is the best always. You can use it for years if handle with care. This is Anantha Idli Maker which is highly recommended. Always keep clean the maker. Its a must to ask the seller on how to use the maker. Chef Div is willing to advise on the maker that you have.

Chef Div's Receipe :-
1) Pudina Idli
2) Carrot Idli
3) Masala Chicken Idli
4) UPPUMA IDLI (INSTANT IDLI)

BASIC IDLI RECEIPE

Author : Chef Div
Ingredients

• 1 cup basmati rice or sona masoori rice or regular rice
• 1 cup parboiled rice
• ½ cup urad dal/black gram, skinned whole or skinned spilt
• ¼ cup poha/flattened rice
• ¼ tsp methi seeds/fenugreek seeds
• water as required
• salt
• oil to apply to the idli moulds

Instructions

1. pick and wash both the rice and urad dal.
2. soak the rice and poha in water for 4-5 hours.
3. soak the urad dal with methi seeds separately for 4-5 hours.
4. drain the soaked urad dal. reserve the water.
5. grind the urad dal, methi seed with some of the reserved water till you get a smooth and fluffy batter.
6. grind the rice to make a smooth batter.
7. mix both the batters together in a large bowl or pan. add salt and mix well.
8. cover and let the batter ferment for 8-9 hours.
9. after the fermentation process is over, the batter will become double in size and rise.
10. gently mix the batter.
11. grease the idli moulds.
12. pour the batter in the moulds steam the idlis in a pressure cooker or steamer.
13. if using pressure cooker remove the vent weight.whistle.
14. steam for 10-12 mins or until the idlis are done.
15. remaining batter can be stored in the refrigerator.
16. serve the steaming hot idlis with coconut chutney and sambar.

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Chef Div's Receipe

UPPUMA IDLI (INSTANT IDLI)

Are you planning to do idli when your guest arrived your house on an early morning and don't have the batter inside your fridge? Don't worry. Chef Div is here to teach you on instant idli by using uppuma ASAP.

English Shortbread for your taste buds!

SHORTBREAD

Make shortbread as your homemade Christmas present. When you are looking for something to crunch and munch, taking the shortbread and having it will give a leisure to your taste buds. To add, shortbread is tastier than butter cookies. Here is the basic receipe of shortbread. Moreover, please count for customade recipes. Children will enjoy on eating this shortbreads! 

BASIC RECEIPE

Author : Chef Div

Ingredients :

1. 125g Butter
2. 55g Custard sugar
3. Custord sugar (for final touch up on the dough)
4. 180g Multipurpose flour

Preparation Method :

1. Heat oven to 190C
2. Beat the custard sugar and Butter together
3. Put the multipurpose flour
4. Cut into square
5. Use fork and pressed on the dough gently to give the texture/hole as in the picture
6. Sprinkle custard sugar
7. Chill inside fridge for 25 minutes
8. Bake in oven from 15 to 30 minutes (until pale golden-brown)

NOTE : Shortbread should be baked until pale golden-brown so that it will be harder. But, cookies should not be baked until pale golden-brown since cookies should be in medium.

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Golden Day's Custord Semperit Cookie

Golden Day's Custord Semperit Cookie - the classical Malaysian cookie.

Custord Semperit is one of the cookies which is very famous among the Malaysians until today. This receipe will give a yellowish and mouth melting semperit. Chef Div advises all of you to bake it on oven for not more than 10 minutes with 250 degree. Semperit will give different taste if you bake it more than 10 minutes. The higher the time consumed for baking the harder the cookies. Chef Div reminding again to have good attitude towards the time of baking.

Author : Chef Div

Ingredients : 

1. 300g of Anchor butter

2. 160g of Icing sugar

3. 2 Egg yolk

4. 4 spoon of Sweet concentrated tinned milk

5. 1teaspoon of Vanilla essence

6. 240g of Multipurpose flour

7. 160g of Corn 

8. 160g of Custord flour

9. Red cherries (for decoration)




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Very Valentine by Adriana Trigiani

Hi, girls! Are you looking for a chic-lit? Want to feel the days with grandma? Then, get Adriana Trigiani's Very Valentine (Valentine series). Apart from that, you can feel the love between a chef and a cobbler.

OVERVIEW :

The Angelini Shoe Company, one of the last family-owned businesses in Greenwich Village, has been making exquisite wedding shoes since 1903 but now teeters on the brink of financial collapse. To save their business from ruin, thirty-three-year-old Valentine Roncalli—apprentice to and granddaughter of master artisan Teodora Angelini—must bring the family's old-world craftsmanship into the twenty-first century. Juggling her budding romance with dashing chef Roman Falconi, her duty to her family, and a design challenge presented by a prestigious department store, Valentine returns to Italy with her grandmother in a quest to build a pair of glorious shoes to beat their rivals. And in the course of discovering her true artistic voice and so much more in la bella Italia, Valentine will be turning her life and the business upside down in ways she never expected.

The loveliest chocolate shop in Paris by Jenny Colgan

Whenever I say Paris, what comes into your mind? Yes, Eiffel tower, chocolates, French beauty and others. Do you a person who wish to visit Paris atleast once in your lifetime? In that case, I would recommend you to read a novel by Jenny Colgan. Which eventually epitomises the Paris as a whole. Definitely you could feel the chocolate and Parisian lifestyles through her writting.

Onion Rice (BAK KUT TEH)

Onion Rice (BAK KUT TEH)

Eating Bak Kut Teh only with Onion Rice will give its best delicious taste. Mungojerry KL (Malaysia) is very famous for Bak Kut Teh. Here is the best receipe for the Onion Rice for Bak Kut Teh. This is a speedier method to do Onion Rice.

Author : Chef Div
Preparation Time : 5 Minutes
Ingredients :
1. Onion (as needed)
2. Oil
3. Cooked rice
4. Chicken/Pork

Method :
1. Fry the pan
2. Pour oil
3. Put the onions that have sliced
4. Once the onion turn into golden brown, fry chicken/pork
5. Add the cooked rice
6. Stir well

ONION Rice - Bak Kut Teh special

Hi guys, you can check on the recipe to make onion rice to taste the Bak Kut Teh. Onion rice is the best type of rice which will compliment the BKT well. Give a try on this. Click on the All About Food compartment to peruse on the recipe.

Feel Paris

Click on Reading Pleasure compartment to get to know about Paris.

ANNOUNCEMENT

Hi, guys! Welcome back to my blog. First and foremost, I would like appologise for swtiching to a new blog. To make it clear, due to the technical problems there is a need for the shift. Apparently, I promise to attach back all the previous recipes.

By the way, I have created a new compartment to review on the novels, books, plays, drama and many more. Hope you guys will participate in reviewing and commenting too. Take care all. :)